The Winchester Gospels
by Emily Blake
Summary: A collection of custom fics based on YOUR requests and suggestions! Latest chapter: "But In The End" - The final battle of Sam and Dean Winchester. There was only ever one way this story was going to end. Warning: Violence and Character death.
1. Call for fic requests!

Hey there!

I've seen some people on this site actually ask for suggestions and requests for new fics, and I thought this sounded like a lot of fun, and a neat sort of writing challenge! So I'm giving it a go.

If you have any ideas that you think would make a good fic, let me know in the comments! I'm open to writing just about anything.

I can do short oneshots or longer full-length fics, fluff or angst, about any Supernatural character you would like, doesn't have to be limited to the main boys. I'm open to doing pairing stuff, including slash (just note that I'll try to keep any romance stuff around a teen-appropriate level, so I won't be doing any erotica). If you'd like me to write you into the fic as an OC, I can do that too! I can do cases of the week, songfics, AUs, or crossovers, and whatever else YOU think might be cool.

The only things that I can think of that I WOULDN'T want to do would be non-con or Wincest. (Sorry!)

Feel free to be as vague or specific as you'd like in your requests/suggestions! It could be anything from "Sam and Dean hunt a kelpie" to "SPN/Hunger Games crossover" to anything you can think of!

I look forward to the challenge!

Love, EB

P.S. I hope you enjoy the first installment "But In The End." Or maybe "enjoy" is the wrong word… I made myself very very sad.


	2. But In the End -- Part I

**A/N:** This is just a two-chapter quickie about an idea I had for how the series could end. (Not that I WANT it to end this way. I don't think I could handle that. T_T)

* * *

"This is going to work."

Dean's voice was quiet, almost a whisper. Sam looked over at him in the driver's seat and swallowed, his nerves buzzing.

"Yeah," he answered, even though Dean's words hadn't been a question. "Yeah, it'll work."

Dean nodded, not meeting his eyes. Sam knew there was an internal battle raging inside his big brother. Of course he knew they had no choice but to go through with what they were about to do. The entire world, the entire universe, depended on it. Everything would be swallowed by Darkness: Earth, Heaven, Hell, all of it.

Dean would gladly give his life to defeat The Darkness. But he couldn't bear the thought of Sam doing the same.

Sam rubbed his chest and winced. It was still very sore. "Dean, I…"

"I know."

Sam nodded, blinking rapidly. He wasn't scared. Not for his own life, anyway. The only thing that scared either of them more than dying was the thought of failing. They had to lock away The Darkness, and it had to be done _now._

They both knew it. There was no need to say anything.

Dean turned to look at him, a cocky grin on his face. "Let's kill this bitch."

-o-

The air slammed out of his lungs as his back crashed against a tree. Dean felt something crack, white-hot pain lancing up his spine. He collapsed to the ground, his mind reeling. He struggled to his hands and knees, but The Darkness was on him once more.

Together the brothers fought The Darkness, an entity of unspeakable evil. The sheer mass of its sinister being was too large to be contained within one vessel, splitting itself in two, with eyes that were merely pools of pure darkness. The field around them was torn up and battle-scarred as their fight raged on.

After months of research, and more than a little help from Castiel, they had discovered that two of the weapons the archangels used against The Darkness so long ago still existed. Armed with twin blades wrought from obsidian and consecrated black steel, the knives were the only thing they had that seemed to hurt or slow down the evil being.

But even with the knives, Sam and Dean could do very little against this foe, who God and his archangels had only been able to contain. What hope did two mere humans have?

The optimistic wager would be "none." And yet the brothers still fought, as was their way.

Dean didn't even have the strength to brace himself as The Darkness mercilessly beat him. Blood poured from his nose and the multiple cuts on his head and face. Blinking against unconsciousness, Dean lifted his head and looked at his brother.

Sam was about fifty feet from him, battling the other Darkness vessel. His little brother was just as cut up and bloody as he was, but Sammy was fighting back with an intensity that made Dean's bruised heart ache with fierce pride. As Dean watched, Sam swiped at the Darkness with his knife. The blade sliced through the vessel's shadowy aura, crackling with blue light on contact. The Darkness hissed in pain and skittered backwards a step.

The vessel that had Dean pinned turned to look at the other fight as well. Then it looked down at Dean with a wicked grin.

"What are you smiling at, ugly?" Dean growled, spitting blood from his mouth.

The Darkness didn't answer. It just left him there and slithered its way over to Sam, coming up behind him while he focused on the fight in front of him.

Dean's blood went cold.

"Sam, look out!" Dean yelled, his voice cracking. Desperately he tried to pull himself to his feet, but he barely managed three steps before his legs caved beneath him.

Sam began to turn, but it was too late. The Darkness behind him grabbed him around the shoulders, and the other drove a razor-sharp tendril of shadow, its own makeshift blade, right through Sam's chest.

"NO!" Dean screamed. "SAM!"

Sam gasped, dropping his knife as his knees buckled. The Darkness tore its blade free with a nauseating crunch. Dark red blood seeped through Sam's shirt.

The Darkness released him and stepped away, allowing Sam to fall to his knees with a thud.

"NO!" Dean cried again, panic flashing through his veins. He forced himself to his feet and staggered to his brother's side just as Sam fell onto his back.

The Darkness, chuckling menacingly, faded into the surrounding shadows.

Dean collapsed to the ground, his body unable to support him any longer. He dragged himself on his stomach the last few feet to his brother.

Sam lay looking up at the starless sky, his breath coming in shallow gasps. His hands covered the gaping wound in his chest, blood blooming between his fingers.

Tears welled up in Dean's eyes, his whole body shaking with rage and with grief. "Sammy," he choked.

Sam's heavy eyes lolled around, following the sound of Dean's voice until he found his brother by his side.

"D…Dea…n…"

"Shhh, don't try to talk, buddy," Dean murmured, trying to stop his voice from quaking and failing. He reached out and placed one of his hands on top of his baby brother's.

"Dean…I…I want… you to…to know…"

Sam's voice was fading away to a whisper, his eyelids growing heavier. Dean pushed himself closer to hear him better.

"I don't…I don't…regret it…Not a…a second…of it…"

Dean nodded, clenching his jaw to keep from screaming. "Yeah, me too," he whispered. "Me too."

Sam choked, his body shuddering. He gasped for air, blood gurgling in his throat.

"It's OK, Sammy," Dean soothed, tears dripping down his face. "It's OK, I'm here. It'll be over soon."

Sam's eyes flickered closed.

"I'll be right behind you," Dean whispered, choking back a sob.

Sam's last breath rattled in his chest, and then stopped. His face went slack, and his heartbeat stilled completely.

Dean squeezed his eyes shut against the wave of sorrow that crashed into him. Gripping his brother's shirt in his fists, he wept bitterly, his heart as utterly broken as his body. He didn't know how long he lay there, how long The Darkness sat and gleefully watched from the side, drinking in his pain and misery.

A seed of fear blossomed in Dean's gut as he lay there next to Sam's body. Something should have happened by now… The spell… But they couldn't have gotten it wrong, they had been so sure…

Dean felt himself being torn from the ground and thrown twenty feet in the air. He felt his arm break when he hit the ground, but he barely felt it. He barely felt anything anymore.

The Darkness advanced on him with its two vessels, triumph gleaming in the shadows that writhed around them. It set to beating him again, kicking and hitting and tossing him about like dogs fighting over a scrap of meat. The whole time, Dean fought to stay awake and kept his eyes on his brother's body, waiting for some sign…

The Darkness grabbed him around the throat and lifted him into the air. Dean wheezed and choked, dangling helplessly. It seemed The Darkness was finally bored of playing with him.

One of the vessels twirled one of the obsidian knives in its hands, the one Dean had lost track of minutes ago. Dean's gaze flicked to it.

"Do it," he snarled, glaring at The Darkness.

The Darkness regarded him for a moment as though intrigued by him. Then it let out a roar of triumph and plunged the blade deep into Dean's gut.

A few things happened all at once.

Behind them, bright blue light erupted from Sam's chest, flaring out painfully bright and engulfing the entire field. A sigil burned white beneath his bloodstained shirt, too bright to look at.

Dean's whole body went numb as The Darkness dropped him. He fell facedown onto the grass and lay still.

Furious shrieks from The Darkness shredded the night air as the light emitting from Sam's body only grew brighter. Dean watched through nearly closed eyes as the shadows writhed and the light shattered them into tiny pieces.

The Darkness was swallowed up, every last wisp of shadow gathered and caged inside a huge ball of blue-white light. Dean watched as The Darkness was sucked inside and trapped there.

Their spell had worked after all.

Now there was just one piece left.


	3. But In The End -- Part II

Castiel backed up, then surged forward to slam against the barrier. He crashed into it, pain shooting all up and down one side of his body. But he didn't care. He didn't care if he shattered himself against this invisible wall, he needed to get through. His friends needed him.

The Darkness had learned much in its eons of solitary captivity. It remembered that it had been God and his archangels that had managed to slam shut the gates. And it had learned how to lock its mortal enemies out.

Castiel didn't know why The Darkness had chosen this place in the middle of nowhere to nest. But it had protected it well against any assault that might come from Heaven. All angels were barred by an invisible barrier.

But two humans had gone through to face The Darkness alone.

Cas couldn't see the Winchesters from up here, flying high above the field. The area was warded from his sight or hearing. In desperation he threw himself at it again and again, but was unable to so much as dent the wall. He ignored the voices of his brothers and sisters, calling for him to come away, to let the Winchesters complete their mission if they could. To let them take on The Darkness alone.

Castiel simply couldn't abide that. If they were going to fight, then his place was beside them.

Suddenly, a blue-white light erupted from the ground far below. It pushed away The Darkness' wards. The barrier fell.

Castiel sped toward Earth, his heart hammering in his chest. The other angels called to him, told him to come back.

He didn't listen.

-o-

Castiel crashed down into the field.

The Darkness writhed and shrieked like a wounded animal behind a cage of light, its noise muted as its influence dissipated. Cas looked around, and saw a large shape lying near the middle of the field, at the light's epicenter. Cas took a hesitant step toward it, then another, his heart sinking with every step.

It was Sam.

A white sigil glowed from his chest, a gruesome stab wound marring his flesh, pierced through his too-good heart. His face was pale, but peaceful in death.

Castiel fell to his knees beside his friend.

"Oh, Sam," he whispered, his hands falling to his sides. Emotion swirled inside his chest, making it hard to breathe.

This was so wrong… He didn't deserve this…

A small sound reached Cas' ears, barely audible over The Darkness' struggling. It sounded like someone coughing.

He looked around for the source. When he saw a second shape lying not too far off, Cas jumped to his feet and ran over.

His sorrow nearly overwhelmed him when he took in the sight of Dean's broken body. His friend was still alive, barely clinging to life, most likely through sheer stubbornness. A deep slash in his stomach bled steadily, taking an excruciatingly long time to bleed out.

Castiel sank to the ground once more, pain constricting his throat and prickling his eyes. Gently, he gathered Dean into his arms and held him against his chest.

Dean opened his eyes. When he saw who held him, his battered face cracked into a smile.

"Cas?" he whispered.

Castiel met his gaze, tears threatening to spill over. "I'm here," he croaked.

"I'm sorry…"

"No, don't… You don't have to…"

"We wanted to tell you," Dean insisted, his green eyes pleading. Every word took an immense effort on his part. "We wanted to tell you…about the plan. But we knew…you would've stopped us."

"You were right," Cas said simply, fighting to keep his voice even. He looked at the light. "What is this?"

Dean took a breath to explain, but coughed wetly. He gasped in pain, his body shuddering involuntarily.

"It's OK, don't talk," Cas said quickly. He placed a hand on Dean's head and closed his eyes.

He saw into his friend's memories. _A spell… a sigil branded onto their own flesh, right over their heart… two sacrifices required… the first would bind The Darkness… the second would vanquish it for good… The spell activates at the moment of death… As soon as Dean died, it would be complete…_

Castiel gasped and opened his eyes. He gently nudged aside the collar of Dean's shirt, and saw the edge of a brand on his chest, the same symbol that glowed on Sam's.

Castiel no longer tried to stifle his tears. "Oh, Dean…"

"Cas… There was no other way…"

"But…"

"Listen to me," Dean whispered. "You did…everything you could…You saved our asses…so many times…It had to be…this way."

Castiel look at him, and saw tears pooling in Dean's eyes as well. So much horror those eyes had seen. He deserved to be free of it.

"Let me help you," Cas begged. He reached toward Dean's forehead with two fingers.

Dean jerked his head away and swallowed, grimacing. "No healing…The Darkness has to be the one to…to kill me, Cas…That's how the spell works…It's already…done…Just a little longer…"

"You don't have to suffer, Dean. Please." The last word came out as a sob.

Green eyes bored into blue, and suddenly Dean understood. He gave Cas another weak smile, and the tiniest of nods.

"Rest now, Dean," Cas whispered, reaching toward him again.

"See you soon, Cas," came the quiet reply.

The angel placed two fingers on the man's forehead, and Dean's eyes closed as he drifted off to gentle sleep.

Castiel held Dean as he slept, he didn't know how long. Tears dripped from his eyes as he sat, cradling his dearest friend in his arms as he died. Castiel felt so small and helpless. He'd been able to spare Dean from the terrible pain of his last moments, but it seemed like such a small gesture.

Dean's breath shuddered in his chest. Cas waited as he breathed in and out.

In.

Out.

…

In.

…

…Out…

…

And then there was nothing.

Cas sobbed, holding Dean's body against his chest as he cried. In all his thousands of years of existence, the angel had never felt such an overwhelming feeling of loss. It was as if a deep pit had yawned open in his gut, threatening to drown him in the sorrow that surged up inside.

A burst of light made Cas jump. The sigil burned into Dean's chest had activated. As Castiel watched, squinting against the brightness, it blossomed until it enveloped the entire field, just as Sam's had done. Then it began to slowly collapse, shrinking in on the incarcerated Darkness at its core.

The Darkness roared in fury, slamming against the walls of its prison, but the light would not budge. It collapsed further, searing The Darkness and pressing it smaller and smaller.

Then finally, with a final shriek and a loud bang, the light exploded.

When Castiel had blinked the bright spots from his vision and looked again, the light was gone, as was The Darkness. The field was once again steeped in natural moonlight and starlight.

The evil was defeated.

And the Winchesters were dead.

-o-

Castiel burned Sam and Dean's bodies together in that same field, the site of their greatest sacrifice. He stood vigil over their pyres as the flames flew higher and higher in the pale light of dawn.

For a long time he stayed in that field. His grief was so potent that it seemed to thrum through the air. Every angel in Heaven felt it surging across the airwaves. They had never felt anything like it, and they stood in silent awe of such powerful, humanlike emotion pouring out of one of their own.

Castiel stayed, unmoving, barely blinking, until the last cinder drifted to the ground. And then he turned and disappeared from the field, never to return to that place.

-o-

He returned the Impala to the bunker's garage. He could have carried it there, zapping it from one place to the next. It barely weighed an ounce to him, after all.

But for some reason that felt wrong.

Castiel didn't think Dean would mind if he drove it home for him.

-o-

Cas didn't touch any of Sam or Dean's things in their bedrooms. He wanted them to stay preserved exactly as they were.

He tidied up the kitchen – the boys probably would have laughed at the sight – and straightened the library.

He could have simply left it all. Cas could have locked the bunker tight and destroyed the only key. But he knew that's not what Sam and Dean would have wanted.

Instead, he decided to hold onto the key for now. Perhaps one day, other young hunters would prove themselves worthy of the legacy. Perhaps they would find this place and all the treasures within.

Perhaps they too would come to make this place their home.

And when they did, Castiel would make sure to come to them, and tell them the story of two brothers who sacrificed everything for a world that didn't even know their names.

-o-

Weary from travel and from grief, Castiel finally returned to Heaven, his tasks completed. He made his way down one of the many gleaming hallways, his feet heavy, but his heart growing lighter with every step. He stopped in front of a door,

pushed it open and stepped inside.

As he looked around the brightly lit room, comfortably quiet and warm, he couldn't help but smile.

 _So this is Dean's idea of Heaven…_

"Dean?" Cas called.

A different door opened from the other side of the room. Castiel barely recognized the man who stepped through.

Dean looked better than he had in years. The perpetual shadows under his eyes were gone. The years of compounding injury upon injury had vanished. A lifetime's worth of grief and anger had gone, taking with it a massive weight off his shoulders. He looked… content.

Dean smiled warmly, crossing the room to pull Cas into a tight hug, which Cas gladly returned. Dean clapped him on the back before they pulled apart.

"It's good to see you, Dean," Cas said, smiling tiredly. "You look well."

"You, on the other hand, look like crap," Dean replied. "Come in, man."

Castiel followed Dean into the other room. Inside were shelves upon shelves of books, more books that anyone could hope to read in any number of lifetimes. Cas couldn't help but grin; he should have guessed Sam's heaven, which adjoined Dean's, would contain at least one library.

Sam stood up from the table where he had been reading from a leather-bound volume nearly as big as he was. He laughed and gave Cas a hug.

The three of them stood in comfortable silence for a moment, Cas looking around the library.

"Welcome to nerd-vana," Dean quipped. Sam made a face at him.

"Are you both… all right?" Castiel asked.

The brothers traded glances.

"Yeah, Cas," Sam assured him gently. "We're OK."

"I'm so sorry… The Darkness…," Cas began.

"Is gone," Dean finished for him. "It was worth it."

"Definitely," Sam agreed.

Castiel shook his head, blinking back tears.

Dean placed a hand on his shoulder. "Cas… It was always going to end bloody for us," Dean said quietly.

"And anyway, we're here now," Sam added with a small smile. "Nothing really ends."

Cas nodded and cleared his throat. "After everything you've done, all the lives you've saved… You can go wherever you'd like, visit any other heaven you want. If you ever need anything, anything at all, you have only to ask. All of Heaven is in your debt."

Dean smirked. "You pull some strings for us with upper management?"

Cas smiled. "Something like that. And I have an idea for where to start."

-o-

Cas held the door open, ushering the boys inside. They stepped into a warmly lit foyer of a quaint little house. A familiar one.

They turned back to look at Cas, who smiled to himself.

"Cas, is this…?" Sam asked quietly. Dean's eyes were bright.

Cas nodded.

A thump of footsteps sounded from the living room to the left. The boys turned, startled.

A dark-haired, grizzled man rushed to the doorway and froze when he saw who was there.

The three men stared at each other, open-mouthed.

"Dad…" Dean whispered.

John Winchester took in the sight of his sons, emotion welling up in his face. Tentatively he stepped toward them. Then he crossed the distance between them in two long strides and pulled both of his boys into a hug.

Sam and Dean wrapped their arms around their father, gripping the back of his shirt as the three of them stood there, holding each other silently. It was a long time before they pulled away.

"I'm so proud of you boys," John croaked, tears glistening in his eyes.

More footsteps sounded on the stairs behind them. Sam and Dean turned to look who else was there.

Mary Winchester stopped at the top of the stairs, one hand covering her mouth.

"Dean…," she whispered. "Sammy…"

With shaky knees she descended the steps. She stopped in front of both of her sons, placing warms hands on their faces and looking each of them over, drinking them in with all her love shining in her eyes.

The whole family cried as Mary hugged both of her boys. Castiel watched as they seemed to melt into her arms, too many long years having separated them until now.

Still smiling, Cas turned and quietly showed himself out. He would give them some time alone to catch up and just be together, after so much time and so many terrible trials.

Sam and Dean deserved peace. Their work was done.

At long last, the Winchester brothers were finally… _finally_ …

Home.


End file.
